Samsung is reportedly negotiating to support Mistral, valuing the company at €20 billion.

      Samsung is reportedly considering an investment in Europe's leading AI startup, Mistral. According to a Financial Times report on Wednesday, the South Korean company is in discussions to take part in a funding round that could value the Paris-based firm at around €20 billion, as indicated by sources familiar with the situation.

      The specifics regarding the amount Samsung might contribute are less clear. The Financial Times estimated the investment at "hundreds of millions of euros," while other sources have suggested it could be close to €1 billion.

      What is more certain is the structure of the fundraising: Mistral aims to secure approximately €3 billion, nearly double its valuation of €11.7 billion from less than a year ago. This follows a significant multibillion-dollar deal with Microsoft to host its models on Azure.

      Both Samsung and Mistral have not verified the discussions, and both declined to provide comments when approached by Reuters, which reported the Financial Times' findings. This lack of confirmation is typical for such stories, and it is essential to keep that in mind. Early-stage funding negotiations frequently fall through, get reassessed, or change their investors, and the Financial Times has acknowledged that both the amount and the valuation could vary.

      Mistral has spent the past year building a supporter roster that reflects what a sovereign pitch demands. Its September Series C funding round raised €1.7 billion at an €11.7 billion valuation, with Dutch chip-equipment manufacturer ASML investing €1.3 billion to become its largest shareholder.

      EQT's Scaleup Europe fund has also been mentioned as a potential participant in this new round, although the complete list of investors has not been revealed. If the funding materializes as reported, Mistral’s total funding would amount to approximately €6.5 billion in equity and debt combined.

      For Samsung, the rationale is rooted more in supply and demand than in a desire to support European initiatives. The company's memory business significantly benefits from the growth of AI, and its market cap reached $1 trillion earlier this year, primarily due to demand for high-bandwidth memory essential for training and operating models like Mistral’s.

      Acquiring a stake in a leading-edge lab would provide Samsung with access to the software aspect of a market where it already has a hardware presence.

      For Mistral, attracting a strategic investor with its own chip manufacturing capabilities is clearly beneficial. CEO Arthur Mensch has discussed plans to design custom silicon to decrease reliance on Nvidia, making it advantageous to partner with a major memory supplier during this transition.

      The startup is also expanding its computing facilities, having secured an €830 million debt package earlier this year to establish data centers in Paris and Sweden, and counts Airbus and BMW among its corporate clients.

      The broader context is a rapidly evolving European AI sector that continues to exceed valuation expectations more quickly than it matches product advancements. While Mistral’s models are currently outperformed by those from OpenAI and Anthropic, both valued in the hundreds of billions of dollars, the €20 billion figure reflects Europe’s desire for a locally grown leader rather than a comparison of capabilities.

      This demand has intensified as U.S. export controls and platform limitations have shifted the perception of domestic alternatives from a luxury to a necessity, prompting governments across Europe to direct procurement towards local suppliers.

      At this moment, the information remains a report and not a finalized deal. If Samsung commits, it would represent a significant addition to Mistral’s investment roster and illustrate that interest in the company is no longer solely a European focus. If it does not, the funding round is still likely to attract considerable interest at a €20 billion valuation, given the lineup of strategic and sovereign investors already in place. Regardless, the current terms may be subject to change before finalization.